I shot about 200 rounds through a .357 Sig at a range. It was nice. I am a revolver guy but I liked the pistol (Glock) and the round. It shoots straight and doesn't kick a whole lot. The rounds are expensive because they are not widespread yet but so was .40S&W when it first came out. Powerwise I would say it is somewhere between a .40S&W and a mid power .357mag. Two cops I am friendly with bought ones and they are happy with the purchases.

yes it's kind of like overpressure 9mm cartridges, the main difference being SIG will still top out ~200FPS or so more depending on the loads. If you look at data from "one shot stops" in real shootings or those extrapolated from gel testing, there isn't THAT much difference with the highest end 9mm +P bullet vs. 357 SIG. Sometimes even in the raw data (i.e. simply penetration/expansion) that are gleaned from similar media the numbers can be very close. The difference in this case is that there will be a higher energy dump in the SIG bullet.
55gr .223 is an itty bitty bullet, but it does the job. Why? Velocity and bullet construction. Of course handguns aren't great stoppers anyways, but the SIG will have the velocity that theoretically should make it a better performer than the 9mm.
The problem comes with the second part - bullet construction. The SIG round was created to emulate the legendary stopping power of the itty bitty 125gr .357 Magnum. Same bullet diameter (.355" vs. .356??) and same velocity (YES .357 Mag has a higher upper limit but these weren't the stop-em-like-lighting cartridges) but the big difference is that the SIG cartridges used more modern bullet construction approaches like bonding the core with the jacket. What was then realized is that the actual stopping power from the Magnum was a result of the rapid fragmentation (much like the .223) and consequent energy dump. They found that the SIG cartridge would frequently overpenetrate... so... since that time they MIGHT have gone back to constructing bullets more for expansion than penetration. I don't know. Evidently they did for the AMs.
The big difference between 9mm and the SIG round on the shooters end is going to be an increase in muzzle flash and recoil (and frame battering). If you've heard the SIG at an indoor range, it's an attention getter to be sure.

When I shot the .357 SIG it did have a fair amount of muzzle flip but I think that is just from the pistol. When I have shot glocks in the past the muzzle always flips up when I shoot.
I only own one semi-auto (9mm Ruger P89) so I am not the most knowledgable guy out there. I liked the round but as I have stated in the past I feel more comfortable with a revolver.

Good comments
one key that I have found in reducing muzzle flip with any handgun is to reduce the distance between the line of the bore and the arm/wrist. Weapons like the Glock, the 1911 with a beavertail safety, the P7 and others allow you to get a really high hand position on the grip.
Just looking at the physics involved, the higher that the bore line is above the web of your hand, the more muzzle flip there will be. There are other factors involved, such as weight of the weapon (all steel revolvers will absorb a LOT more recoil than lighter revolvers), things like compensators at the end of barrels that redirect the escaping gasses downward, muzzle weights, etc.
Assuming all other factors like those mentioned above are equal, when you can get a high grip on the weapon the recoil force will be more backwards as opposed to upwards and angular. The key is to try out the different platforms not only to see which ones allow you to comfortably manipulate the controls with minimal hand shifting, but also allow you to get that high grip. If you see the pros, you'll see a teeny tiny distance between the bore axis and the hand... even with revolver guys like Jerry Miculek.
My wife tried a Glock (9mm - G19) as her first and she was really bummed out because I didn't realize the importance of the hiiiiiigh grip. Now, it's no problem at all.
cheers

This past weekend I talked to a cop that had to use his .357sig on duty. He had to shoot a pit bull that had just attacked a kid. He got a frontal shot shot and the bullet entered the dogs chest just below his neck at a range of about 10 yards. The dog went down immediatly and then died. The child was ok but had some deep bite marks on his arms.
I know that it is not the same as person but I have heard stories that rounds that work well on a person in one situation don't work on animals in another situation. It is a poor comparison (animal/person) I know but I had to wonder if my 9mm or .44 special would get the same effect? The cop placed the round well which is the first step. The most whiz bang bullet in the world will not help you if you can't hit your target. Just some food for thought.

I have a somewhat sad story about the round, although it attests to the rounds effectiveness.
A freind of mine from college bought a Glock 32 a few years ago. We shot it at the range, and I didn't like it all that much, it was snappier than I prefer, but not uncontrollable (maybe I'm just a 45 nut). Jarrod broke a cardinal rule of firearms safety and didn't put his gun up after a night of drinking and handed it to one of his other friends. The guy took the gun by the trigger and shot jarrod in the chest. He was carrying 125gr Corbon bullets. Teh bullet fragmented as it was designed to and left no exit wound and a point blank range shooting.
He survived the accident, but now he lost 10% of his left lung and suffered some pretty bad kidney damage from the fragmentation of the bullet. He was VERY lucky to survive.
The round does a damned good job of putting people down hard when they hit.

"When I shot the .357 SIG it did have a fair amount of muzzle flip but I think that is just from the pistol. When I have shot glocks in the past the muzzle always flips up when I shoot"
I remember my Glock 23 seemed to go almost veritcal from my perspective, with zero rearward movement. Maybe I limp wristed it sometimes, but the muzzle flip was extreme in any case. But quick, on the other hand.

Texas DPS, Tennesee Highway Patrol and Virginia State Police swear by it.
Regardless of caliber you are gonna find instances in which it's performance was less than stellar.
The fact is modern bullet design has put all service calibers on a fairly even playing field. The Indiana State Police just elected to transition to Glock 17's after serious issues with their new Glock 22's. The Troopers I know up there dont feel like they will be undergunned.

shovelhook - "When I shot the .357 SIG it did have a fair amount of muzzle flip but I think that is just from the pistol. When I have shot glocks in the past the muzzle always flips up when I shoot"I remember my Glock 23 seemed to go almost veritcal from my perspective, with zero rearward movement. Maybe I limp wristed it sometimes, but the muzzle flip was extreme in any case. But quick, on the other hand.

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